The Benefits of Wearing Weight Lifting Gloves

by
KENT NINOMIYA Last Updated: Sep 28, 2015

Kent Ninomiya

Kent Ninomiya is a veteran journalist with over 23 years experience as a television news anchor, reporter and managing editor. He traveled to more than 100 countries on all seven continents, including Antarctica. Ninomiya holds a Bachelor of Arts in social sciences with emphasis in history, political science and mass communications from the University of California at Berkeley.

Overview

Wearing weight lifting gloves is a personal choice. Some people swear by them and would not go to the gym without their weight lifting gloves. Others claim they interfere with their workout. You should consider the pros and cons of weight lifting gloves before making your decision.

Grip

Weight lifting gloves improve your grip on weights. Hands get sweaty during a workout. When they do, your hands can slip. This can be annoying if you are doing pull ups and keep falling off the bar. It is also dangerous if you are holding heavy weights over your body. Weight lifting gloves make workouts safer.

Calluses and Blisters

Lifting weights over long periods of time results in calluses and blisters on the hands. Some people find these unattractive and use weight lifting gloves to preserve the appearance of their hands. Even those people who do not mind tough hands can still benefit from weight lifting gloves. A tiny blister can prevent a weight lifter from using his hands that day. Weight lifting gloves prevent blisters.

Pressure

Weight lifting gloves relieve pressure placed on your hands when lifting heavy weights. This allows you to move beyond the limitations of your hands. The chest and back muscles on most people can handle much more weight than their naked hands can support. Weight lifting gloves increase the pressure capacity on your hands.

Wrist Support

Most weight lifting gloves also wrap around your wrists. This provides valuable support for the wrists while they support heavy weights. The material of the glove acts like extra ligaments and tendons while the wrist is bent backward. Weight lifting gloves help prevent wrist injuries in the gym.

Increased Lift

Weight gloves with wrist straps can make you stronger. They do this by distributing the weight being lifted across the forearms instead of making your fingers hold it all. This is especially effective in pulling exercises like deadlifts or upright rows. Weight gloves with wrist straps allow you to lift much more weight than you could with just your hands.

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